Future Stars: Coleton Beck, RB, Virginia Tech

In this article, I am going to be looking at Coleton Beck, RB out of Blacksburg, Virginia. He has just been signed as a three-star recruit by Virginia Tech and could have a big future in college football.

Now, Virginia Tech isn’t exactly a storied franchise of recent years when it comes to their running backs going in the draft. Their last running back to be drafted was David Wilson who went in the first round to the New York Giants back in 2012. But with Coleton Beck, it could be the dawn of a new day at Lane Stadium. He is one of several running backs on the roster in what is a highly rotated backfield so he should get ample opportunity to show off his talents over the next few years. Beck received interest coming into college from 30 colleges including Pittsburgh, Clemson, and UCF but ultimately decided to commit to Virginia Tech.

He stands at 6’1” 185lb and looks every bit of it. His athleticism is his most obvious trait, made more noticeable by his unbelievable speed. ‘The Human Blur’ as he has been nicknamed, was timed at Virginia Tech’s training camp running a 4.29 second 40 yard and he is said to have the high school record in Virginia for 100m at 10.41 when running track in high school.

This year he also made it onto the DFF Devy Watch and was ranked at 230 overall despite having never played a snap in college football.

Looking at his tape, it is hard not to be impressed by his speed, but looking closer you will also notice his patience behind the line of scrimmage that opens holes up really well for him to burst in to. As a defender, if this guy gets past you, chances are you’re not catching him. He basically reminds you of a bigger and slightly better version of Dri Archer in the way that he plays.

One issue he does have, as noted by the Devy Watch, is his lack of receiving production. Whether this is his fault, or just the scheme he was in during high school did not allow him to open up as a pass catcher. This is, however, something that could be worked on if he ever worked his way into being an every down back for the Hokies.

Honestly, I don’t see any running back on the Virginia Tech roster that matches up to Beck talent-wise. But with there being so many ‘mouths to feed’, Beck will have to wait his turn and then grab his opportunity with both hands. So realistically, his freshman year may be a quiet one, but I would imagine by the time he gets to mid-way through his sophomore year, he should be the guy that Virginia Tech look to for making the big plays. If Beck plays to his potential, he should be picked in the top three rounds when he comes to declaring for the draft.

Feel free to drop me a follow on Twitter @DFF_JamesH if you want to talk some football. Thanks for reading!

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I work as an In-Play US Sports trader, father to Elijah, Archie and Izzie. Fan of Pittsburgh Steelers. Play the game as DT for Staffordshire Surge (Find them on Twitter @StaffsSurge). FSWA member. Follow me on Twitter @DFF_JamesH